AluminumAlloyBoats.com

allan, my comment or reply is about bonding the DC Neg Bus to the hull. This should be done from the battery Neg. or the Neg. buss if you have one ? It can be done with a battery sized cable, and a copper lug soldered to that cable (silver solder is good) and then shrink wrapped above the sleeve so ...

doug, The main problem with a steel alloy brush instead of a nickel steel alloy is the rustable steel particles off the wire, left behind. I don't think this will damage your boat permanently? I'd expect the areas to show rust (stain) if wetted where steel was left behind? But the alloy of the wire ...

silverstreak1, I'd vote the primary problem was from the foam in the bilges? If you search a little in the recent posts we've seen several photographic examples of the results of poured in foam holding thin films of water in the bilge against hull metal, for long periods. The bilge water, if allowed...

silverstreak1, that is good news for your leak problems that your boat is welded. I looked up the Valco and found most of them (details not all that great online) have a chine that is an 'inside V' insert type of extrusion and as near as I can see? (again, online images not great) the welds are excl...

silverstreak1, I agree with Chaps, those older, mainly riveted, hull seams have seen a lot of flex in their life. So leak testing may help you find and patch locations where the hull isn't tight any longer. One thing that is kind or hard to overcome in that type of test- is to locate the exact spot ...

Sparky508, I can see your problem getting the acid rinse done well on a boat with a sealed deck. Your idea of driving around to 'slosh' the mixture around isn't half bad! If you have any inspection ports in the deck? and could use a 'spray wand' to reach the chines and outer areas of the bilge? I ag...

lc32, as mentioned above, I would look for some insulating material- like sheet plastic but... not a full sheet film. If you took 1/8" HDPE and put it on the table saw and put a grid recess pattern (checkered) about 1/6" deep cuts- then the capillary action that creates a wide area thin fi...

LC32, Coatings are only as reliable on aluminum as the prep- if the tank is well etched after mechanical abrasion- sand blasting being the best sander next, and an alloydne (chromic acid resulting in a chrome oxide film over the bare/raw aluminum) solution put on while the etched metal is still wet ...

lc32 this remark/answer is about fuel tank heating. The fuel returning to a full tank is one whole lot different heat contribution than one returning with the same heated fuel is in a 1/8 full tank! Reaching 280-300 def F of tank contents seems pretty hard to believe happening via radiated engine si...

lc32 regarding the mounting of sheet plastic on the tank surfaces; Solid sheets mounted directly to the metal will have a different expansion and contraction rate - so, if the sealant remains very elastic when cured- I suppose sheet plastic could be glue to the tank sides- I'd be concerned about the...

Leftcoast32, https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/oo273/kevinmorin_photo/Tank%20Construction/.highres/centermounts_In_2a.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds here is a tie bar of 1/2" 6061 T6 Extrusion (flat bar) used to bolt two side by side tanks together. https://hosting.photobuck...

reacting to the reply @ #7 post. I'd go to the shop and ask to discuss bend radius for 0.2" or 5mm or 0.187" (3/16") mtl and confirm the bend radius of the top die? Yes, Trust but Verify. If you get the :normal- "we've been doing this for 20 years" and "using a knife ed...

leftcoast32 as regards heat in the engine room tank space: First if the tank is supply fuel for a diesel engine (?) doesn't the return stream of fuel used to cool the injector piping return to the tank warm or hot over time? So, if you're concerned w heat build up- doesn't seem like engine room heat...

leftcoast32, next comment is about bedding and surfaces; vertical, top and bottom. Any aluminum sheet surface can corrode IF there is a means to create and retain a thin film of water- vertical/bottom/top...... the key is the thin gap between any other surface- that allows capillary action to retain...

leftcoast32, my first two comments relate to the alloy and size of the replaced tank/repaired tank. First, 5083, like 5086 do have strain hardening properties that require a bending nose bar, on a press brake, to be 4T- the radius should be four times the thickness of the material or you risk strain...

Bill 310, First welded boat design I've seen with such nice Profile View lines that weren't curves! Everything above the chine is a straight line but the proportions and combination of those line choices are very attractive- never knew angle points would look so nice together; great designer. Thanks...

hatcher, there a couple of ways to post images. One method is used to link to a picture storage site. As soon as you hit 'reply' and get the text dialog box there will be a series of icons above (top row in pop up window) one of which shows an icon with "a mountain and the sun" in the icon...

hatcher,
any chance of posting them (the pictures of the boat's current condition) here so we could all follow the discussion and understand visually the scope of work?

Cheers,
Kevin Morin
Kenai, AK

hatcher, Welcome to the AAB.com Forum, glad you've found topics that may help your boat. 1. Is leaving it unpainted doable for a boat like this that came fully painted and may have filler in places etc..? As you noted there may be cosmetic issues regarding the metal under the paint. But it is doable...

Chaps, if your surfacing process gets refined to suit your expectations and you decide to "franchise the process"; pls keep me in mind for a dealership- at least until I get a chance to see if I could afford it!!! (?) Sure looks like a service that would be beneficial to all the welded alu...

Chaps, sure does look like the genuine "white metal blast" and that's the key to aluminum's longevity in my experience. Is the process proprietary? or it something you're willing to discuss and explain? looks like it would be worthwhile learning for any builder who wants to produce a quali...

Thanks Chaps, sorry to be air headed! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQwSjXlz0k8&t=772s Hope this cut and paste works? Sorry for the inconvenience. Looks to me like a good full hull, all white metal etch, and very few streaks- they're shown rinsing in the video and the dilution of the acid etch...

For any new builder, owner, buyer- this is what needs to happen after the metal work is done, and before any other work- including paint begins. time stamp: 1:34 or there abouts to 2:05 this crew shows the rinsing of an entire boat acid etch. If your builder doesn't do this- then you need either A) ...

Choc'moose, replies to the last post and renewed remarks from previous ones. tapering to a 8o deadrise at the stern. I think its pretty common here, Pacific NW in USofA to measure dead rise from the horizontal line outboard the keel (baseline to some) and then measure upward to the chine so that see...

choc'moose, Welcome to the AAB.com Forum, thanks for posting your design build project. Do you have the Plan View lines- showing the waterlines in a 1' or 1/2' increment to the sheer? I think it would be interesting to see the volume change in waterline/water plane outlines from the top? How does sh...